IELTS Essay: Celebrities and Philanthropy

Ivan

in IELTS Writing Task 2 Posted on

04/29/2021 02:33 PM

In this essay, you need to address both sides of the question. This means that you need to have some good ideas about the pro's and con's of celebrities and aid. You can research articles about celebrities and international aid. You should find answer to some of these questions first:

How do celebrities participate in international aid?
What problems do they usually focus on?
What would be the negatives of an international superstar helping?
Overall, do you support more celebrities doing this or not?

Now lets take a look at a few ideas:

IDEA 1

"Star Power"

Celebrities are able to use their "star power" to influence others and push for progressive ideas and changes. The reason for that is their massive following. It is difficult to ignore a famous person who has millions of followers that read every message they send. If these celebrities asked for small donations or a vote for something, their audience would follow. This influence can be used to pressure politicians and change society.

IDEA 2

IDEA 1

Using it only for PR

Plenty of famous individuals use volunteering and join international organizations just for themselves. They do not want to help people, but to be seen helping people. They create these stories of helping the poor, volunteering in poor schools, donating a small amount of money and more, just so they can "wash" their image and be seen down to earth. The moment they finish this "PR stunt", they turn their back to the cause.

IDEA 2

Misintention

Many fans follow celebrities for their shiny, glamorous image. In this way, they do not take them seriously, because those celebrities are entertainers. In a situation where a celebrity tries to become serious - some might run to be a politician, others like Leonardo DiCaprio can advocate for fighting climate change, their audience might not take them seriously. This will cause that audience not care for the important problems the celebrities try to solve. After all, all their fans want is to see their favorite star being him or herself and just entertain.

We are living through changing times, filled with challenges and hardship. A lot of people around the world are suffering due to the ongoing pandemic, the economic problems in less developed nations and the consequences of climate change. It is my view that philanthropy and international aid can be a tool for good, although many celebrities and people owning wealth use it mainly as a PR tool, rather than for improving communities around the world. This essay will address both sides of this debate.

Vocabulary:

challenge - difficult situation, an obstacle to deal with

hardship - difficult time

suffering - a feeling of pain and sadness

ongoing - continuing right now, at the moment

pandemic - a disease that spreads around the word

less developed nations - poor countries, 3-rd world countries

consequences - the result after a usually negative action

climate change - the change of our weather and climate caused by global warming

philanthropy - donating and helping to those in need

international aid - money and resources given by developed countries to less developed ones

a tool for good - something that can be used to do good

wealth - money and power

PR tool - in marketing the meaning is to improve your image, to become more like-able to people

communities - groups of people

Firstly, international superstars hold incredible power these days. With the help of social media like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, celebrities have become public speakers in front of millions and millions of their international fans. Using these platforms can definitely guide their followers towards attentions worth discussing like women’s rights, poverty, discrimination and racism. There are many American superstars like Beyoncé and Oprah Winfrey, who empower women all around the world, not only through their music or shows, but with motivational speeches and philanthropy to help women’s rights in less socially developed countries. This push for a positive change can often times be more powerful than simple organizations, or even politicians advocating for the same agenda. Because of this reason, I believe celebrities can use their star power to change society around us for the better.

Vocabulary:

international superstars - celebrities known all around the world

incredible power - (about their speech) - very influential, can influence millions of people

public speaker - a person who has a platform and uses it for speak to an audience

fans - people who follow celebrities

to guide towards - to make your audience follow your ideas

attentions worth discussing - important social problems

women's rights - the ability for women to be equal to men

poverty - being poor

discrimination - treating people with disrespect because of their social status (and many other reasons)

racism - disrespecting people because of their skin or race

to empower _______ - to give power, to encourage

motivational speech - a talk in which a person is trying to encourage and motivate others to improve their life

less socially developed countries - countries in which people do not have enough rights or freedom

to advocate - to try to convince others of your idea

agenda - idea, ideology, problems to be addressed

star power - the influence celebrities or stars have on others

While it’s true that famous individuals can be a force for positive change, we can’t ignore the fact that many would prefer to either waste all the resources they have available for glamor, or use philanthropy for expanding their own personal brand. It is clear that once people become successful and money stops being an issue in their life, many prefer to use it mostly on themselves or even hoard it away. A lot of famous celebrities use charity only in a last case scenario, usually after they’ve made a public mistake. They donate or volunteer to sort of “wash” themselves of their previous mistakes, without actually trying to focus on the problems people have. It is a well-known PR stunt for many, especially young celebs, that once they make a mistake like taking drugs, or having an affair – they rush to some small city school and take a photoshoot session with the poor students. By doing this, they not only do not contribute anything to improving the kid’s life, but instead focus all the cameras and attention on themselves and their “act of good will”. Obviously, this is counterproductive.

Vocabulary:

* famous people - celebs, celebrities, famous individuals, famous men or women, influencers, successful individuals

to be a force for - to use your power to make a change

waste - using something carelessly, without considering anything

resources - if we talk about rich people the meaning is "money"

glamor - shiny image that makes people appealing

to expand - to increase something

personal brand - a person's image, the way people see someone

"money stops being an issue" - a person becomes wealthy

to hoard ______ away - to collect something (money) without sharing it with anyone

charity - giving money or items to people in need

in last case scenario - in the last case, the last choice you have

to donate - to give something of yours to others for free

volunteer - help people without usually being paid

"wash" yourself of ______ - to remove a bad image from yourself

PR stunt - a strategy to gain an audience's admiration by doing something because it is considered "good"

having an affair - cheating on your loved one, seeing a 3-rd person in a relationship or marriage

rush to - to run to something, to hurry up

a photoshoot session - a set of photos taken for good image

to contribute - to add something meaningful

"act of good will" - doing something meaningful and good for others

counterproductive - an action that gives the opposite effect

Overall, celebs can and should use their influence on society to achieve some positive change. Being famous is like a contract with us the people, where a person gets to rise to the top, but he or she has to act and behave in a way that supports and improves the well-being of those who lifted them up in the first place. And if they chose to do the opposite, then they do not deserve to stay on that spotlight. Hopefully, more and more famous individuals extend their hand to help others, rather than focus on their own selfish interests.

*The essay is 508 words. This is a little too long, but it explains in detail the problems, and so it sets a great example for writing.

Vocabulary:

a contract - an agreement on paper with other people

to rise to the top - to become successful, to become famous and influential

to behave - to act, to lead yourself in a way

the well-being of someone - someone being healthy, safe and happy

to lift someone up - to improve someone's social status

to deserve - to be worth supporting, to show quality for receiving some reward

to be on the spotlight - to be a center of attention, to be famous

to extend your hand - to try to help someone

selfish interests - thinking only about yourself, doing something to only improve your own situation

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IELTS Essay: Celebrities and Philanthropy

Essay Type

Discuss Both Views

Ideas (For both sides)

Positive Effects:

Negative Effects:

Example Essay:

Introduction

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Paragraph 1

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Paragraph 2

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Conclusion

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